Always and Eternity
by flawsmadebeautiful
Summary: Non-magical AU. Lily/James. He's her High School Crush. She's his High School Obsession. But they'll never tell. It's a secret she'll take to the grave, even if it breaks her heart. He'll never admit that he's finally fallen...
1. New Friends

**Always and Eternity**

**Chapter One: New Friends**

**Summary**: Non-magical AU. Lily/James. He's her High School Crush. She's his High School Obsession. But they'll never tell. It's a secret she'll take to the grave, even if it breaks her heart.

All written in third person.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Harry Potter. Any characters you do not recognize from HP world are of my own making.

* * *

She was fifteen, and a freshman in High School. Having had just moved from her home, which had been forever, to this new school. She was joining at the semester into a very professional-seemng school. To get in, you had to go through an interview and fill out an application. It was a public school, but there were only about five hundred students attending in comparison to the usual few thousand in a more open public school. Her name was Lily Evans, and she was much different from her sister, Petunia Evans. While her sister thought that going to a 'normal' school was best, Lily thought that this new school would be better for her.

It was called Hogwarts. A interesting name indeed, but Lily didn't question it at all. At least she had one friend who she knew lived around here. Her friend, Thalia Whitefield, who had moved to Washington years before Lily had. Lily lived in a busy culdesac, which was a street which turned around at the end. Basically a dead end street, with about seven houses down it. Thalia had recommended the school for Lily so that she wouldn't have to be alone. Petunia had scowled and flat out decided that she was going to the 'normal' public school, as she put it.

Thalia was in the same year as Lily, and they had both lived in California before this. Thalia's father had moved because he said that he didn't want to live somewhere as crowded. Even though they ended up living in Seattle, which was very busy. He had gotten a good-paying job, and her mother had easily gotten a job as a doctor. Thalia had strawberry blonde hair, parted slightly to the left, and olive green eyes. Or at least from what Lily remembered, but that was two years ago.

Lily moved into her new house, which was not quite as big as her last house had been. It didn't have as many windows, and it certainly didn't have the beautiful views she was used to. On the bright side, she no longer had to share a room with Petunia who had always complained. In fact, she'd gone as far as refusing to bring any of her friends over merely because she didn't want to have to tell them that she had to share a bedroom with her younger, and annoying sister.

Her parents didn't really care which school their children went to. Yes, Hogwarts was said to be much nicer, but public schools like Westway High were nearly as good. They saw no difference, and Petunia seemed perfectly content with Westway and Lily with Hogwarts. Petunia already insisted that she had a few friends there, even though Lily doubted that she knew anyone beyond their neighbors.

Lily wondered vaguely if she would know anyone else at her school, as she picked up a box labeled 'Lily's Room' in her tidy handwriting. It was everything from her old room that she had wanted in her new room. Her new room was a pale sand dollar color, almost white. It was so unlike her bright blue room she was used to, and it was a good deal smaller.

However, Lily didn't complain at all. Instead, she walked out to the U-Haul truck and started to unload a box with 'Bathroom' clearly printed on the side. This one she plopped into the bathroom, which was larger and more spacious than their old one. The only downside was that there were two doors to it. One to her own room, and another to Petunia's. So in short, they had to share a bathroom. Lily watched as her father, and some other moving guy hauled in their chairs and table.

At least that hadn't changed, she thought to herself. She would feel even more homesick if they couldn't move with their furniture. Their squashy, tan, slightly out-of-place couch sat in the middle of their bright living room. In the family room sat their TV, which had yet to get hooked up, and their other sofa.

* * *

Surprisingly, to Lily it wasn't the time change that threw her off. It was the fact that she now had to take the bus, to her new school. Which just had to be a transfer school, didn't it? Yes. She had to get on a bus to what they called her 'home school' which was Petunia's school, Westway. Then she would get on another bus, number 28, which would take her to Hogwarts. Same thing for getting home.

On the first day of school, she woke up at five sharp, to her stereo blaring. She had forgotten that she had to reset it, therefore it was louder than she expected it to be. She jumped out of bed, scrambled to get to her dresser, which she banged her head on and then finally fumbled for buttons. She hit a few wrong ones, and then decided to give up and instead pulled the plug out of the power outlet, and the stereo flickered and died.

With a sigh, she turned on her lights. Hoping that Petunia hadn't planned to get up at the same exact time, Lily snatched her outfit that she'd laid out the night before, and grabbed her towel to go into the bathroom. She took a quick shower, and got dressed, closing the bathroom door just as she heard Petunia's alarm go off.

Her parents didn't wake up until six, and it was already five thirty. Which meant that Lily had at least a half an hour before anyone else was up to bother her.

She walked into their tile-floored kitchen, which was cold at the moment. She ended up digging through a few boxes before she was able to retrieve a frying pan, and not much longer for her to find two eggs, a stick of frozen butter and half thawed bread in the refrigerator and freezer.

She was eating when Petunia walked out, dressed in a green blouse and jeans. She merely poured herself a bowl of cereal and stood at the counter while she ate, her eyes fixed on her cereal bowl. She finished rather fast, and went back in the bathroom to do her makeup and hair.

Lily got up halfway through eating to open the door, fetching the newspaper. She then let her dog in. His name was Buddy, and he was a miniature Jack Russell terrier. He had a brown tipped tail, two brown ears and a few other patches of brown on his white coat. Lily fed him a bite of her scrambled eggs, and then put her dishes in the dishwasher, before returning to her room.

She checked that she had all of her school stuff, and then went into the bathroom to brush her teeth. She opened the door to find Petunia, straightening her blonde hair. Petunia's pale green eyes widened, and then narrowed for a second on her sister. She opened her mouth as though to say something, but thought better of it and refrained from speaking to Lily at all.

Lily, who was used to it, retrieved her toothbrush from under a pile of other objects, and then her toothpaste. She brushed her teeth in silence, grabbed her hairbrush and left the bathroom. She brushed out her hair in her room before sitting on the couch in the living room, looking out the window, waiting for the bus which came at 6:26.

Her father shuffled into the kitchen at six, and started the coffee machine. Her mother could be heard, taking her morning shower. Still, Petunia was in the bathroom, fixing her hair no doubt. She only walked out at 6:20, her bangs clipped back and her eyes flamed by mascara and light eyeshadow. She looked pretty, Lily had to admit, although she preferred no makeup herself. She knew some girls overdid theirs, but she liked being more natural. She didn't need mascara, foundation and lipstick to make her beautiful. No, she wasn't any beauty but she didn't believe that any makeup would make her any different.

The two sisters walked to the bus, Petunia noticeably trying to avoid Lily in all ways possible. Lily walked behind her sister, head down, not bothering to try to get closer to her sister. She knew her sister was trying to avoid her, and did nothing against it. They had stopped talking when Lily was thirteen, and by fifteen, their relationship of sisterhood was completely in ruins. A few times, Lily tried to repair the damage, but Petunia seemed to be trying to push harder at Lily's every attempt.

The bus was silent at this early in the morning, and Lily got off with Petunia when the bus stopped at 7:00.

She turned to her sister, who was looking at the gray building with a slight interest. " Bye, have a good day," Lily said to Petunia, who acted like she barely existed.

When Lily turned to find which bus would take her to Hogwarts, she finally heard Petunia reply. " Good luck, Lily."

She turned to say something to Petunia, but all she could see was her sister's bag vanishing into the mass of other students who now flooded the drop-off section of the parking lot. With a sigh, she walked down the row of buses, counting their numbers. When she got to 28, she stepped in front of the door.

" Does this go to Hogwarts?" she asked, wanting to make sure she didn't go to the wrong school.

The bus driver grunted and nodded, which Lily took as a yes and climbed on.

She slid into a seat not far from the front and waited. Only seconds after she had taken her bag off her shoulder, other students began to clamber onto the same bus. Lily stared up at them, studying each. She wanted to know what kind of students she was going to end up with for the next three and a half years.

Most of the first half were a mix of boys and girls, then the flow slowed down. The last few to get on were boys, a few who had to run to catch the bus before it pulled out.

They pulled exactly five minutes after they had dropped off students, and Lily clung to the seat in fear. Her stomach was eating itself in anticipation and fear. She wanted to go to school, she loved school. She was terrified though. What if she couldn't find Thalia? What if she went to the wrong class and her teachers yelled at her?

Even worse, what if everyone stared? She knew she was new, but she couldn't stand people staring at her.

A boy stopped at her seat, and he peered at her through his dark hair. " Can I sit here? Everywhere else is taken," he inquired.

She nodded and moved over, and she saw a bit of shock go through his eyes. " What's your name? I'm Lily, Lily Evans," she introduced herself politely.

" Severus," he replied, sitting down. " I've never seen you, are you new?"

Lily nodded. " My first day, I just moved here from California."

He tilted his head slightly. " I've lived here my whole life. I'm a sophomore, you?"

" Freshman," she said, still nervous. " So what's Hogwarts like?"

" Brilliant," and he was off. He explained all the great things about the school. From their principal to their teachers and students.


	2. First Glances

**Always and Eternity**

**Chapter Two: First Glances**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter.

* * *

Lily hopped off the bus after her new acquaintance, Severus. He stopped by the front office so she could pick up her new schedule, and so that they could compare classes.

" Excuse me?" Lily asked, stepping into the large office and peering over the wooden counter.

A nice, polite looking white-haired lady looked up. " Hello. How can I help you?" she asked, writing something on a notepad before turning to Lily. She decided she liked this lady at once, for the woman had kind eyes and seemed quite nice.

" I need my schedule. I'm new here, my name is Lily Evans," she said adjusting her book bag on her shoulder.

" Oh, you're the new student," the woman seemed delighted at meeting Lily. " I'm Mrs. Jedda, here's your schedule. Just ask anyone for help if you get lost, okay?"

Lily nodded. " Thank you," she said, before walking back to meet Severus, who was watching her get her schedule.

She unfolded the paper that Mrs. Jedda had given her, and read off her classes for Severus to hear.

_1) Physical Activites_

_2) Spanish 1_

_3) Health_

_4) Physical Science_

_5) Algebra 1_

_6) English 1_

Severus, being a sophomore didn't have Algebra 1, English 1 or Civics. He did have her Health and Spanish 1 though, having not taken his language classes his freshman year.

" I'll show you your gym class," he offered.

Lily looked up from her schedule. " My what?"

" Gym," Severus said, pointing to her first class. " That's what gym is, they call it physical activities."

" Oh," a look of understanding passed over Lily's face. " Alright."

Severus stopped by his locker, which was down the Sophomore Hallway before he took off on the search for Lily's. " Yours is number 1875 right?" he asked, looking at the numbers on the lockers.

" Uh-huh," Lily replied, checking the number for what seemed the hundredth time. " I see number 1880," she noted, pointing to the said locker.

Severus went to it, and then began to count backwards until he found the right one. " Here it is," he said, spinning the dial on a blue locker. " What's your combo?"

" Umm..." Lily flipped open the paper. " 15-45-23," she read off clearly.

Severus spun the lock as Lily spoke, and with a click, her locker opened.

" Thanks, do I actually need any of my books for gym?" she asked Severus as she began emptying her bag into her locker.

Severus shook his head. " I doubt it," he said, watching her organize her locker neatly before she closed it.

" So, what about my other classes?" Lily asked, studying her schedule even though she'd already memorized it all.

" I'll get you from gym and take you to Health, which we have together. Then we have Spanish class. I can show you there too. Then we have lunch. I can show you your other classes while we eat." Severus leaned over her shoulder to glance at her schedule again.

Severus walked down the hall, showing her the gym which was large, with hardwood, glossy floors and colored stripes on it for games like basketball and volleyball.

" Hey, do you know a girl named Thalia?" Lily asked, remember that she had promised to meet her friend early so they could also compare schedules.

" Thalia...Whitefield?" Severus asked, looking confused. " I think that's her name..."

" That's her, do you know her?" Lily asked eagerly.

" I know her a bit. She's in Health," Severus mumbled. " Yeah, sort of."

" She's my friend," Lily explained. " I said I'd meet her here."

" I'll see you in Health," Severus muttered as Thalia came around the corner, her lips giving away to her sparkling smile as soon as she saw her best friend.

" Lily! I haven't seen you in ages!" Thalia flew at her friend, clinging to her like she was air. " I missed you!"

" I missed you too, Thalia," Lily choked out from being squeezed to death by her friend.

" I can't believe you're finally here!" Thalia exclaimed, nearly jumping up and down. " How are you?"

" Other than being choked to death," Lily said sarcastically, " I'm doing fantastic."

" Sorry," Thalia released her choking grip on her friend. " I guess I got a little too excited. So, where's your locker?"

Lily led her down the hall and pointed. " 1875," she motioned to her locker.

Thalia walked up to it and banged on it. After trying to open it she spun the dial to a few random numbers, tried to open it and then stepped back. " It seems normal."

" What do you mean?" Lily asked, confused by what her friend was doing.

" Oh, there's usually something wrong with every locker. Like Phillip, his locker doesn't actually lock. Then there is Zack's, his smells funny and has since the janitor cleaned. Then there is Josh's, his won't open unless you do the numbers all off by exactly five above what the paper says."

Lily stared at her locker. " I think my locker's fine."

" You think that now," Thalia replied. " Mine always gets jammed, even when I have nothing in it. Ooh, what's your schedule?" Without waiting for an answer, she ripped the piece of paper out of Lily's hands and read it.

" We have Health, Algebra 1 and English 1 together," she yelped happily. " I can show you to gym though."

" Severus already did," Lily replied, glancing toward the gym that Severus had showed her.

" Severus...Snape?" her friend asked, looking shocked and appalled.

" Yes..." Lily replied, looking at the gym still. Seeing the look on her friend's face, she asked, " Why?"

" Do you know who he _is_?" Thalia asked, her mouth still open.

" Clearly not," Lily replied. " What's wrong with him?"

" He's not the type you should hang out with. He's failing almost every class, and he's almost always late. He comes to school with those ratty shoes, and torn jeans. He's dangerous I'm telling you," Thalia warned her.

Lily shook her head and turned back to the gym. She couldn't see what was so bad about Severus. He'd been nice to her on the bus ride, and he had been nice enough to show her to her class. So what was wrong with Thalia? Severus didn't seem so bad. " I think he's alright."

" You think that now, he's a bad boy to hang out with though Lily, just warning you," Thalia said. " Class is in five, I'll see you in Health."

Lily walked into the gym, and looked for someone, really anyone who might help her.

She walked through the dark gym, her sneakers making pattering noises on the hardwood. She knocked on what she assumed was the teacher's office, and a young woman answered it.

" Hi," Lily said, less confidently than she expected. " I'm new, so ah...what do I do?"

The teacher smiled nicely. " Well, I can get you a lock, and you can dress out tomorrow. Do you know how to work the combo?" she asked, digging through a box and grabbing a shiny lock.

" Yes," Lily replied, " thank you."

She went into the locker room, which had dull grey lockers, and picked A45, spinning her combo neatly into the lock to latch it on.

" Hi, what's your name?" one girl asked her. " I'm Desiree."

" Oh hi, I'm Lily," she introduced herself.

" Are you new here?"

Lily nodded. " I just moved here."

" Hm," the girl didn't sound unfriendly, so Lily stood there, waiting for her. The girl grabbed her bag and walked out, leaving Lily to scramble after her, nearly tripping in her haste.

She stumbled out of the locker room, praying that no one had caught her clumsy mistake. She followed Desiree out, and Desiree began to read the board, so she assumed she was supposed to as well.

Being the first two in the gym, it was dark and the only light flooding in was from the hall, where light came from the window.

Desiree hesitated, and then executed perfect pacers, running from one side of the gym to the other. Someone else joined them in the gym. Watching Desiree so she could learn, Lily didn't realize there was someone else in the gym. However, she turned to see the first guy in the gym.

He was rubbing his glasses with his shirt, which was a normal black t-shirt. He looked up, catching Lily's eyes. He stared back at her, his dark brown eyes boring into hers. She stared back, unafraid and determined to show him that she wasn't intimidated. After a moment, Desiree turned the light on, and he blinked, putting his glasses back on and turning to read the board as well.

Lily still stared at him. He began to do the same pacers as Desiree, eating up the distance faster than Desiree seemed to be managing, her blonde hair tied back in a ponytail as she ran.

Lily watched the two run, and other classmates soon joined them. Thankfully, no one introduced her to everyone in the class, so she didn't actually have to stand up and talk to people. Instead, she sat on the bench while others ran.

She watched the boys, who were attempting stupid tricks to get girls' attention, and some of the girls who were actually impressed. Lily rolled her eyes. She was not fooled by their antics. Half of them probably already had girlfriends, and the others probably weren't worth trying for.

The first boy still stuck in her mind, even though she didn't know why. He reminded her of someone, even though her mind couldn't recall just who yet.

So she began to search her memories for a black-haired, hazel-eyed boy. She skimmed past her childhood, which was full of mud pies and animals, flower collections and childhood races. Her memories slowed to a boy, jumping rope. He had messy black hair, and his brown eyes gleamed behind his glasses. The like-hood startled her. That little boy in her memories, he had been her best friend before he moved away.

Admittingly, he had been her first crush. Even though she never knew it for a long time. Even now, she hadn't seen him in ages, and yet she wasn't ever going to admit that she liked him. As for why? She had a feeling he had at one point liked her, and she didn't want to cause him any more pain than the move had caused. He might not even remember her.

This guy reminded her of her old friend. So why did he actually look cute? And not in a little-boy way. He was no doubt much older than her friend, Jay, had been. Jay had been her own age. This guy looked older than her by at least two years. Which was slightly disappointing, but it wasn't like she was going to fall for him. He was some Junior or Senior, so there wasn't anything to be worried about. She was too busy with classes anyway, she didn't have time for any relationship. Not that she wanted one anyways.

Personally, she thought dating as a Freshman was pointless. It wasn't like she was going to find her forever-guy. She didn't even know anyone yet, besides, he was just one guy in her gym class. Just because he was cute didn't mean he was the other things. In a guy, she might not get the whole thing of caring, compassionate and respectful but she wanted the guy to be decent. This guy could easily turn out to be a total jerk and not even worth her time.

So easy, she just had to look at other guys. Just because one guy looked at her didn't mean a thing. Chances were, he was already dating anyway so his girlfriend would take care of Lily's slight liking to the guy. She didn't even know his name, or what other girls said about him.

Desiree had finished early and was standing off to the side. So Lily decided to find out who this guy was.

" Desiree!" she hissed, and the blonde girl spun around. " Who is that guy?"

" Which one?" Desiree asked, looking at the group of boys Lily had gestured to.

" The one with black hair," Lily explained, before realizing that three of them had black hair. " The one with glasses," she added hastily.

" Uh," Desiree seemed to think for a second, her eyes narrowing as she tried to figure out which guy I was asking about. " Oh, him. That's James Potter."

James Potter? Lily didn't dare ask why he sounded so important. Maybe he was just some guy who everyone knew as the class clown or something. Or else, he could be popular. Not good, Lily decided. Yes, he was cute. She just couldn't like him, and she didn't. Well, at least not yet.


	3. Innocent Looks

**Always and Eternity**

**Chapter Three: Innocent Looks**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter.

* * *

Lily finished class, and went to Health with Severus leading, still pondering who this James Potter was. He was just a guy after all, right? All of the guys didn't really mean anything. Even if they did look somewhat like her old friend.

She plopped into a seat next to Thalia, who was getting her a book. When she had filled out the question on the board, she turned to Thalia, who was scribbling away in neat writing.

" Do you know who James Potter is?" Lily asked, trying to sound casual, like it didn't really matter. After all, she didn't know a thing about him yet. Only that he had ruffled black hair, hazel eyes and apparently was very fast.

" Hm? The junior you mean?" Thalia asked, her eyes fixed on her paper.

" I guess," Lily tried to think if he was a junior or senior. " At least, I think he is."

" Oh, yeah. He's not so bad, though his best friend is Sirius Black," Thalia explained. She threw a hateful glance over her shoulder at a boy. He had long black hair, in soft curls that ran to his shoulder and when he looked up, Lily spotted his silvery grey eyes.

" Who is Sirius Black?" Lily asked, still not sure if she was missing something in the message Thalia was sending her.

" Sirius Black? He's good looking, but he's not what you'd call 'relationship material'," Thalia said, using air quotes. " He's too much of a flirt with the ladies. He thinks he can get any girl. Which he can, almost. He goes for the girls who are younger than him. He's friend to James Potter. He's not that bad if you know him, but he's not available anyway."

" So he's like a cheater?" Lily asked, turning back around from looking at Sirius. The guy next to him hadn't look up from his paper, and Sirius was openly cheating off of the boy's paper.

" Of sorts," Thalia replied. " He doesn't exactly cheat. Technically he's still staying loyal to his girlfriend. I don't know if you consider flirting with other girls exactly loyal though. He does it all the time, but most girls put up with it. To a point, then he usually gets rid of them and leaves them for another girl. It's normal," Thalia said, gesturing behind her. " He's had three girls so far this year. They aren't bad girls, they just don't make a smart choice, dating him when they know who he is."

" Who is the guy next to him?" Lily asked. " Sirius is cheating off his paper."

Thalia laughed. " That's normal too Lily. That's his other best friend, Remus Lupin. He's sweet, and he's the one who is good with girls and doesn't have bad looks. If you date any of the 'Bachelors' I'd choose him. He's the type of guy who opens doors for everyone else, even when they're all in a rush. He's friends with Black and Potter. It's their little gang, but not a bad gang. It's more of the 'Eligible Bachelors' group."

" Any other 'Bachelors' I should know about?" Lily asked, surprised at how much she was learning about the students already. She hadn't expected to learn this much about James, or really any guy. She hadn't chosen this school for the guys, but for the education.

" Just one left, but he is sort of a tag-a-long," Thalia said with a funny look. " I don't think he's like the others. I mean, I guess he had a nice personality if you can look past his friends good looks. His name is Peter. He's just sort of their cheerleader, and he follows them around _everywhere_ like a lost puppy. They only put up with him for Remus, I think. And you never want to hurt Remus Lupin," she warned.

Before Lily could even ask why, Thalia was explaining. " It would be like kicking a puppy. He'd give you his 'lost puppy' look. I guess you've never seen it, but I saw him give it to this one guy who snapped at him. He looked at the guy like he'd just been punched. Well James and Sirius didn't take to that too well. They both jumped the guy, and he got a broken nose, and Sirius got suspended for a few days. I think Remus is just sensitive, and they both protect him," Thalia went on.

" Hey, what's your name?" Lily heard someone hiss at her from behind her.

She instinctively turned around, and found her eyes locked with a pair of grey eyes. Sirius Black. " Lily," she told him shortly.

He grinned and turned to Remus, who lifted his head for the first time, or since Lily had looked at him. He had coppery-blonde hair and clear blue eyes. He smiled softly, in a way that seemed more welcoming than Sirius now saying hello.

" I'm Sirius," he introduced himself, sounding bored already.

" And I'm Remus," the blonde next to him said, taking it upon himself to introduce himself.

" Hi Remus," Lily replied nicely, but the teacher cut off Remus before he could reply.

" We have a new student, her name is Lily Evans," the teacher announced just then.

Lily went scarlet, staring at her books and her pencil, which rolled across the desk.

" Well, go up and say something about yourself," the teacher said encouragingly.

Lily shot the teacher a hateful look, scrambling up. She nearly fell over her chair she was shaking so badly from nervousness.

She then stood in front of the class, feeling very awkward. " Er, hi, I'm Lily. I just moved here from California," she said, not knowing what else to say.

" You can sit down now," the teacher said, relieving her of the stress of having everyone staring at her like a animal in a cage.

She did so gladly, and thankfully they moved on in the lesson. Health was a semester long class, so Lily didn't actually miss much, only one day. She had to get her syllabus and her binder, but nothing else.

Lily was filling out a worksheet, when someone walked in.

" Um," she whipped around, ready to glare at the person who had interrupted her concentration. Her eyes landed on a tall, James Potter, who stood in the doorway, looking casual. As soon as her eyes locked on him, he met her eyes for a second before he turned to the teacher.

" Mr. H, I got your worksheets you wanted me to print off," he said, handing a stack of papers to the teacher.

He turned, giving Sirius a grin, which Sirius laughed at, and walked out, hands in his pockets and a casual smile on his lips.

She turned back to Thalia, who was watching her with a knowing look. " _That's_, James Potter," she said matter-of-factly.

" I hadn't noticed," Lily said dryly, sarcasm lacing her words as she turned back to her worksheet.

" What, do you like him or something?" she joked. For a second, Lily froze, and she let the words pierce her with truth and longing. But she then pushed it away and shook her head.

" No, I just don't think he's as great as others must say he is," Lily replied, trying to have a touch of coldness in her voice. But there was no denying that there was more denial.

" Of course girls say he's brilliant. He's not half as great as they all say he is. He's just popular and good looking," Thalia ranted. " I don't know why all the girls are after him. He's not really worth it. He's dated before, I heard from other girls. He treats his girlfriends good enough, but he doesn't ever keep one. He's only had three so far in comparison to Black," Thalia said. " Personally, I like a freshman guy. I'll show you him later."

Lily sighed, this was going to be a _long_ day. Remus resumed the conversation they'd been having before. Lily jumped at the chance to talk to someone else eagerly. She learned that Remus was in her Spanish I class, which was startling to her, since he was a junior after all. He learned that she'd just moved here, and that her sister disliked her.

Sirius added into the conversation, saying that he liked pie, and then complaining that James was going to make him try to start a food fight that day. Lily took that as a hint as to not go near the cafeteria until the food fight was well over. Remus scowled at Sirius as though he might reprimand him, but slowly closed his mouth and shrugged when Lily asked why he didn't just control Sirius and James' antics.

Remus sighed. " They're only fooling around," he reasoned.

" Still, they shouldn't be starting food fights in the middle of lunch hour," Lily argued. " Someone could get seriously hurt."

" That's the point," Sirius butted in, though Lily silenced him with a sharp glare.

" None of them ever hurt anyone. They're just having fun," Remus replied, smiling lightly at Sirius, who was shooting rubber bands at the ceiling in an attempt at who knew what. Lily rolled her eyes when he ended up hitting himself in the eye with one of the rubber bands.

" Remus, I don't even understand why you would hang out with boys like them," Lily stated, staring at Sirius who was rubbing his hurt eye furiously in an attempt to ease the pain.

" They're my friends Lily, I don't have anyone else. Besides, no one else will have me," Remus said. " They're loyal and they don't do anyone any harm. James and Sirius can be a little, sketchy at times but they're good people."

Lily raised her eyebrows but didn't dare ask anymore questions.


	4. Matters of James Potter

**Always and Eternity**

**Chapter Four: Matters of James Potter**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter.

* * *

Lily dipped her hand into a bag of pretzels and munched on one. " So who is this James Potter that you keep talking about?" she asked, searching for another pretzel.

Thalia had school lunch and was unwrapping a chicken sandwich. " He's some junior," Thalia replied sounding casual.

" Well, _some_ junior sounds pretty important," Lily replied, pulling out an apple from her lunch bag.

" He's really not," Thalia said, pulling the lettuce off her sandwich and biting into it.

" Well then who is he? And why does he seem so important?" Lily asked, lowering her voice as a few taller, older boys walked past.

" He's not important," Thalia emphasized. " He's just popular," she rolled her eyes. " James Potter is nothing but," she was cut off as a group of girls walked past, hearing the name, they burst into fits of giggles. " He's just a jerk. An ego-inflated jerk."

" So, he's popular with the ladies, or is he popular with guys too?" Lily asked innocently.

" I think most guys envy him. He's got the looks certainly," Thalia shook her head angrily. " As for personality, I wouldn't count on it. I guess he's not as bad as I make him seem. He's just mean to people he doesn't like. Half a bully, but he's such a flirt with girls."

" You have bad experiences with him?"

Thalia glanced at the girls who had been giggling with disgust. " You could call it that. Here's how it went. I was walking around during lunch, and he came up to me and said, 'Hey Thalia!' and I turned to him and said, 'Shut your trap, no one wants to listen to you.' He gave me a shocked look and he and his friends walked away."

Lily didn't reply at once, biting into her apple, looking thoughtful. " He didn't seem so bad in my first hour," she reasoned. " Then again, he might not have had his friends with him."

Thalia laughed. " Are you kidding? He's friends with almost everyone. Most of the girls will talk to him, more like flirting if you ask me. But the guys don't hate him. He's James Potter, you can't absolutely hate him. His friends are like his brothers, not friends."

" You mean Sirius Black?" Lily asked, remembering the guy who had been next to the sandy-blonde, Remus.

Thalia half shrugged. " I guess you could call him that. Black and Lupin, they're not all that bad. Sirius is known to be a bit of a jerk sometimes but he's alright most of the time. Remus is the intelligent one of them all. He keeps Sirius in check and James controlled. Makes sure they actually do work in class, other than flirting with all the girls."

" Any more I need to know about their group?" Lily asked, pulling out a juice box. She pulled the straw out of the plastic and stabbed it into the carton.

" There is one other guy in their group," Thalia said, sounding less like she wanted to talk about this certain person. " I think I told you about him."

" Really? Didn't you tell me his name was Phillip or something?" Lily asked, twirling her straw around.

" Peter," Thalia said, wrinkling her nose slightly. That was a sign she either disliked Peter, or she found something about him odd.

" What's wrong with Peter?" Lily slurped her apple juice out of the plastic straw, before she gathered her garbage and threw it in the trash. Thalia sipped her milk, a sour look on her face.

When Lily walked back from the trash can, she crossed her legs and sighed. " Well Peter isn't like the others. He's not _bad_ exactly..." she trailed off, " He's just...Peter."

Lily tilted her head to the side. " Meaning?"

" Well he's sort of, like their follower, wanna-be. He's not really built for the whole, Marauder-thing," Thalia explained. " They call their gang the Marauders. They organize most of the fun around here. Like the food fight last semester, and the year before that there was the water-balloon war."

" You say that like it's a bad thing," Lily stated. " I thought you liked James Potter."

Thalia shrugged. " I guess it's a matter of opinion. I think they aren't bad. Just not always rule-followers. Me? Like James Potter," she opened her mouth as though she might consider shouting. " I hate him. He's not bad, but I don't like him at _all_."

" They all say that," someone drawled from behind Lily, who whipped around, her red hair flying into her face. For a second she had to brush her hair out of her eyes, and then she could see Sirius Black, leaning casually against the wall, smirking.

" Stay out of it Black," Thalia snapped, her olive green eyes narrowing.

Sirius cleared his throat as though he was about to make a speech. " When it comes to my best friend, I think it does matter, Whitefield." He grinned as she crossed her arms at the mention of her last name.

" Not this conversation it doesn't," Thalia replied, a bite in her voice that wasn't normally there.

Lily glanced at her friend, and then at Sirius. " What about James then?"

Sirius snorted and crossed his arms, mimicking Thalia. " I'm just saying he's not as bad as your friend there," he pointed to Thalia, " makes him seem. He's really not a bad guy."

" I think I can figure it out for myself thanks," Lily said calmly, not wanting to instigate a fight between the two. Sirius shrugged and walked off, looking as though nothing happened. Thalia looked like she wanted to go after Sirius with a pitchfork.

" Get me a flamethrower," she demanded as soon as Sirius was out of earshot.

Lily shot her friend an offended look. " I'm not getting you a flamethrower! You'll go after him with it!" she objected.

" Exactly," Thalia snarled, crushing her milk carton and flinging her tray into the trash. " If only I could shove him off the roof of the school," she hissed. " That would teach him."

" No! Now Thalia, be nice. No violence, you can resolve this with restraint," Lily said, trying to keep her friend from going after Sirius, even though he had started to annoy her too. " Let's think," Lily paused, scrambling for words in her head. " Happy thoughts."

Thalia looked upset, and then brightened. " Like throwing Sirius out a window! Excellent idea Lily!"

" No!" Lily threw herself in front of her furious friend. " We are not going to throw him out a window. We're not going to talk to him. We'll just ignore him. Remember? If you ignore him, he'll go away. Don't go after him and kill him, it won't accomplish anything."

Thalia huffed. " Fine," she crossed her arms, agitated. " But can I at least have a steel bar?"

Lily gave her friend a confused look. " What for?"

" So if he gets in my way I can shove it somewhere steel bars shouldn't go," Thalia suggested, her eyes glinting with the very thought. " I'm sure he deserves it," she added when Lily shot her a look of objection. " It would be like a human-kabob."

" Now, now," Lily began, placatingly. " We don't want to hurt the guy. I'm sure you can just cope with him. He's not that bad."

" Well you don't have to put up with him in almost every class," Thalia muttered furiously. " Fine," she agreed after a moment, and Lily dearly hoped that meant there were no steel bars or flamethrowers.


	5. Flirts and Reality

**Always and Eternity**

**Chapter Five: Flirts and Reality**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter.

" _People say what's the point in liking someone who doesn't like you back. They are right, there isn't a point. But you can't help who you like, it's not up to you. Your heart kinda just decides for you and there is no turning back once your heart makes up its mind." _

_~ Unknown Author_

* * *

Lily climbed the stairs, which in her opinion the school had too many of. There were three sets of stairs in the school. Each consisted of two flights of eight stairs each.

There was one set down one hall, another down the hall parallel to the first hall and then one smack dab in the middle but on the opposite side of both the other halls. If that even made sense...she thought as she ran up the stairs for the fourth time that day. It was insanity, she thought as she nearly fell for the second time, catching herself on the handrail just in time.

She gathered up her books and pencils that had fallen everywhere. Just as she reached the top of the stairs, fixing her last book, she slammed into someone. _It's was just my day_, she thought.

" I'm sorry-" she began hastily, not wanting to be in anyone else's way. She turned to go around the person, when they spoke to her.

" Oh, it's nothing-" she looked up at the sound of a male's voice. " Do I know you?"

Hazel eyes locked on hers, from behind round glasses. Her emerald green eyes widened, and she recognized him a moment before all the books in her arms tumbled out. _Way to impress him with your skill_, she scolded herself.

Lily opened her mouth, only to find she had nothing to say. She pretended to pick up her papers, even though she missed the actual paper a few times before she managed to straighten them. " I'm in your first hour I think," she replied, collecting her books once again, and trying to straighten her papers.

" What's your name?" he asked, picking up her textbook she'd just gotten from last hour.

" Lily," she replied, taking her book that said, 'Physical Science,' which drawings of motion and physics.

" Call me James," he said, handing her the last folder.

Lily opened her mouth to say thanks, but before she could the warning bell rang. " Bye!" she called, whirling around in search of her next class, which according to Thalia was upstairs. Despite having the same last three classes, somehow Lily had lost Thalia in her search for Algebra.

She made it just in time to room 145, sitting down next to Thalia just as the teacher walked out.

Luckily, she had already passed this section of the book in her old school. So instead of doing anything, she showed the teacher that she'd done the chapter. She showed him her quizzes, her test score and her homework papers.

He approved of them and let her sit there and pretend to pay attention.

" I ran into James in the hall, literally," she said to Thalia, opening her Algebra book to read over the next chapter.

" I did that once, well it was actually his fault, he tripped me on accident. He did help me up though," Thalia muttered, staring at the equations they were supposed to do in confusion. She flipped back to her notes, looking even more confused.

" He helped me up when I dumped all my books at his feet, not on purpose," Lily retorted.

" Hey! You!" Lily turned around at the sound of someone snapping at her. " You, new girl!"

" What?" Lily asked, turning to see a group of guys. Their leader, a dark brown haired boy with blue eyes grinned at her.

" Hey, what's your name?" the guy called. " I'm Tyler."

" Fantastic," Lily murmured awkwardly, having no idea if she actually wanted to know this guy. " My name is Lily."

" I like your name," he complimented. And behind him, Lily could see his friends laughing. He didn't mean it, she concluded from the way they laughed with him.

" Shut it," Thalia snapped, turning on them. Her olive green eyes flashed dangerously. " Go away Tyler."

" Why do you hate me so much Thalia?" he asked, looking as though it really hurt.

" I don't hate you," she spat. " I_ highly_ dislike you."

Tyler and his group took one look at her and started laughing. I could hear them jeering at us in the back and ignored them.

" Ignore them," Lily told Thalia quickly, before she went after them with her flamethrower.

* * *

Lily crossed her arms, leaning against the bleachers as she watched James pretend to hit his friend. She hadn't told Thalia that to her, James wasn't an annoyance.

She didn't tell Thalia that she actually liked James, he was nicer than Thalia made him seem. Of course, almost anyone would be nicer than the boy that Thalia described. She'd seen him talk to others, and he seemed relatively polite.

He seemed considerably outgoing and fun. Not shy, but not bold to the point of rude. He didn't judge people outright, instead watching them to deem whether or not he liked them. He did seem like the type who might judge others, but didn't.

Even when they ran around the gym for ten minutes, he never once commented on the girls. Instead, he kept his mouth shut unlike Sirius who Lily guessed would make some perverted comment about the girls who ran in her class. Thank Merlin that Sirius wasn't in her class. Yet.

The freshman girls, who made up most of the class, seemed to take to him a lot. The girls smiled at him, attempted to catch his eye and batted their eyes, sometimes too obviously in Lily's opinion. They also giggled way too much, Lily added, rolling her eyes.

She didn't _like _him. She liked his company as a person, but no she didn't like him more. At least, that's what she convinced herself was true. She knew she absolutely could not be falling in love with a junior guy. Her father would kill the guy if he ever found out.

Her dad had a strict policy about boys. Petunia, Lily's older sister had gotten a boyfriend at their old school. They'd broken up a few months before the Evans officially moved though. He had been a senior, which in comparison to Petunia being a sophomore, was apparently acceptable.

Lily knew that James was a junior, and that by her father's standards was okay. But by Lily's own personal standards, she knew she was just breaking her heart. He was a junior, and apparently well-known by plenty of the female population. Not just because of Sirius and his playboy-antics. But because James wasn't a complete jerk and he wasn't bad looking, not that Lily would ever say that out loud.

The fact remained that Lily was not the only girl, of even all the freshman, who wanted to know James. He didn't seem to even notice that the girls liked him. Though, how could he possibly _not_ know? Every day, at least five of them surrounded him at lunch. Even though Lily supposed that a few of them were his friends.

Some of them didn't seem to take an interest in him. So Lily did the same, figuring that it was just a stupid crush, right? Nothing would last forever. In her opinion, if something was 'meant-to-be' fate would be kind enough to bring them back to her.

He was the talk of all the girls. Even in the locker room, she'd heard the talk. How could she not? They all wondered if he could possibly like him. Lily secretly wondered if he even knew her name, despite telling him. That was her wonder, compared to the other girls it was small. But she didn't want to hope for something that just couldn't _ever_ come true.

So why did she like him at all? That was a good question. From the first look he gave her, she knew she was done for. But there was something called denial. It kept her from realizing it for a few weeks. By then, she knew she didn't really had a choice but to keep falling.

It was too late, by the time she realized she liked him. By then, she was lost. Not just in his eyes, and his casual smirk. It wasn't just the way he laughed, one corner of his mouth showing in his lopsided grin. She didn't let him know that every time he turned away, she had to look away for fear he would see that she was falling for him.

Any time his hazel eyes would meet hers in a casual glance, she would freeze, and turn away swiftly. She wouldn't let him see her fear. Her fear that if she held his gaze for another second, he would realize she was falling harder than ever. No matter what she did, no matter how hard she tried to pull away, something about him drew her to him.

Maybe it was that he had the same looks as Jay had. She had liked him, but it had only been a friendship..right? Besides, Jay didn't even remember her! Yes, she had gotten his email after a couple of tricky shots at his family. His grandmother, who used to be Lily's neighbor, had finally found it under a stack of papers.

Now she had his email. So why didn't she just simply email him? How hard could it be, seeing as he'd been her friend for a good four years before she had left ages ago. That had been when she was almost ten. Now, she had moved again at age fifteen. Chances of him even remembering her name, or even her face, was highly unlikely.

So why was she so scared to talk to him? Because maybe, just maybe, she wasn't falling for the junior boy she saw in class almost every day, but instead her old friend.

So did she love James? Or was she in love with the thought that he could be liked her friend? Because James, no matter how much he looked like Jay, had his differences. Jay had brown eyes, and James had hazel, with flecks of gold and grey. Jay had been her best friend, and Lily knew all about the saying about friends who fell for their best friends.

Could that possibly explain why she might not be able to meet his eyes? Her own fear being that if she looked into those hazel eyes long enough, she might realize that in fact, he wasn't anything like Jay had been. With his brown eyes, rather than the blue-green eyes that still startled her no matter how many times she met those eyes.

Those eyes that would be the death of her, she was sure.

* * *

Any errors are mine. Not beta-read. Sorry, I just wanted to update. Anyone else like the new updates to the site? Like the forum's formatting and the review button?


	6. Derek Lynn

**Always and Eternity**

**Chapter Six: Derek Lynn**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter.

_Rule #1 Never tell a guy you like them, because then they will immediately stop liking you. _

* * *

Now, Lily wasn't one to voice her thoughts exactly. Most of them were kept to herself in the following weeks.

Her relationship with James consisted of an occasion muttered "hello," in the early morning, and later crashing into him on the stairs. That didn't happen very often in literal terms, so it was usually just an "excuse me," from Lily who kept her eyes resolutely on the floor. She was determined not to drop her books like before.

Thalia was becoming _almost_ insistent on showing Lily her own crush, ALL the time. His name was David, and personally, Lily couldn't see what made Thalia like him at all.

He had short, light brown-blonde hair, and dark green eyes. Lily had enough intellect to keep her thoughts to herself though. She never stated outright that David really wasn't as cute as Thalia claimed, and that he was quite an idiot at times. Lily didn't pick up on what made Thalia think he was special. And really, he wasn't. He was _normal_. Not especially funny, or even nice.

He was almost always silent, kept to himself and never spoke up. To add on to that, he clearly had a girlfriend. Maybe Thalia couldn't see that, Lily reminded herself and decided to keep her mouth closed.

James, who had become a constant nuisance to her, was still in her class. He was still showing off, and for the odd reasons that Lily couldn't explain she would watch him all the time. She knew she probably shouldn't, but no one ever said life was fair.

Then there was one other tiny problem. Derek Lynn. He had bright green eyes that sparkled and dark brown hair that he usually combed to the front and spiked a bit. He was Petunia's friend's brother. Petunia's friend, Amber, luckily went to Westway, though her brother just so happened to also attend Hogwarts.

Now Lily wouldn't say Derek wasn't good looking. But his sister? Petunia had already brought her over twice in the last three weeks, and as far as Lily was concerned was a downright absolute jerk.

Derek was nice and all, but Lily was pretty sure from the looks he kept giving her that he liked her. And Lily? He just wasn't her type (as far as she knew) and she really didn't want to date _at all_ but especially Amber's brother was not someone she wanted to be associated with. Amber, she wasn't nice and Lily really didn't want to have to put up with her anymore than she already had to.

Amber Lynn, like her name she had shoulder length brown hair with shining amber highlights. She wasn't a bad person, at first. When meeting Mr. Evans and Mrs. Evans, Lily thought that Amber might be quite likable. Until later when Amber had snapped at her for taking too long in the bathroom. Lily respectfully bit her tongue and strode away.

Up until then, Lily thought maybe Petunia had picked a nice friend, one who Petunia might learn from. The straight facts were: Amber was nice, when she wanted to be. In short, anyone who didn't meet Amber Lynn's standards (which were impossible) meant they weren't good enough to know her.

Lily knew Amber was a bad influence the moment Amber walked out.

_" Lily, I need your help!" Petunia had wailed. _

_Lily looked up from her book Pride and Prejudice in shock. Petunia rarely asked Lily for help. " With what?" she'd asked, a bit of reluctance in her tone. _

_ "A diet," Petunia had said to put it simply. " I have to go on a diet Lily," she had explained further. "Amber said so." _

_Ah, so that was the issue. Lily raised her eyebrow slightly, "For what? Amber?" Lily had asked. _

_"She's on one too. Amber said boys only like slim, skinny girls. She said I have too much fat on me. I have to lose a few pounds, exercise and dieting." Petunia had looked at herself worriedly as though she really believed she was fat. _

_Lily gaped. " You're not fat. Don't listen to her, Tuney! She's thin as a fencepost. You shouldn't have to change for some guy. If anything, he should like you for who you are. You don't need a guy to make you whole. If anything, you should be proud of yourself and your looks." _

Petunia hadn't listened, as usual. Instead, she went on to ramble about some boy that Amber was trying to get her with. Some guy named Lucas, a sophomore, according to Petunia. And though she _claimed_ that she was head over heels for the boy, Lily could tell she was lying the whole time. Petunia's eyes didn't light up, and she didn't talk about him unless prodded to do so. Often times, she would instead talk about some guy who bothered her in class. A right annoyance she called him, and _Vernon_, she would go on with such annoyance. But Lily was smart and could tell her sister didn't mean it.

In fact, if she didn't think on it much, she would say her sister liked Vernon a heck of a lot more than this Lucas guy.

As for school, it consisted of classes. Lunch, when Lily and Thalia pretty much stalked down David (poor guy had no clue) and then more classes. Thalia would be excited about almost anything _new _she found out about her crush. That included all the times the poor guy fell up the stairs, which was mostly caused by Thalia.

" He fell up the stairs _again_!" Thalia complained after the fourth time this happened.

Lily raised an eyebrow over her juice box. " You don't think it _might_ be because you keep shoving into him?" she pointed out. It was true, every time Thalia saw him she would overreact and run past him while shoving into him, more often times than not, causing him to fall. Lucky for him, he _usually_ didn't get a bruise. Usually.

" No," Thalia replied innocently. "Why?"

" Oh, just...you know, wondering," Lily replied with her eyebrow still raised in suspicion. Her eyes then drifted over to where the four notorious boys were causing trouble. Sirius was on the table, for the oddest reason. Lily tilted her head slightly, unable to tell what he was doing. To her, it looked like he might be trying to dance.

Next to him was James, who was sitting on the table and talking to some girl. She was talking back, making animated gestures and laughing, and unnoticed by him, staring more than she should. Why James was on the table remained a mystery. Remus, the sensible one of them all, was trying and failing to get Sirius down from the table.

Peter, the one who favored the two ringleaders, was for once, helping Remus in trying to get Sirius. Sirius, not wanting to get off the tables at all, ran down the long table and jumped down. That is, before he jumped on the next table.

So Remus and Peter followed him, shouting the whole time, while Sirius ran around having a jolly old time.

" Lily!"

Lily jumped, startled back to where she was. " Oh sorry, what were you saying?"

" That those two are doing nothing to help the situation," Thalia repeated, gesturing at Sirius.

" I think that they should consider calling the police," Lily commented. " It'll take handcuffs, a straightjacket and a silent room to get Sirius Black to calm down."

" Oh, it'll take more than that to stop his running around like a maniac dog," Thalia replied, glaring down at Sirius, who indeed was running around like a crazy maniac.

* * *

And yes, it's really short. But I wanted to get something up. Beta read by SiriusBlackIsAwesome, but all errors are mine.


	7. Guessing Game

**Always and Eternity**

**Chapter Seven: Guessing Game**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter.

* * *

Thalia was looking over the banister, at the lunch line and tables. Sure, there were people all around them eating upstairs (rather than at the lunch tables, though those were packed too) but she was convinced that Lily was looking at someone downstairs.

"So, who do you like?"

Lily froze, her apple halfway to her now-open mouth. "W-what did you say?"

"You heard me," Thalia replied, olive eyes sparking with interest. She smirked knowingly when Lily stared intently at her apple instead of replying. "So, what's his name?"

Lily sat, mouth still agape. Then she shook herself out of it. "What makes you think their is _anyone? _Just because I'm a fifteen year old girl doesn't automatically mean I like someone."

"Lily, I've known you since we were in primary school. I think I can tell. So, who is it?" Thalia asked, not really wanting an argument that she knew Lily would gladly give her.

"Umm," Lily scanned the crowd, searching for someone. She had to find a guy who would be reasonable, but not a lot like who she actually had on her mind. Many of the guys down there, she realized with a jolt, she didn't actually know any of them. She had to know the guy's name otherwise it wouldn't look realistic. "Derek." It was the first person she saw who she knew, and she realized her mistake two seconds later.

"Derek _Lynn_?" Thalia asked, pointing him out from his crowd of friends.

Lily's eyes flew wide with fear. "Don't _point_!" she yelped, smacking Thalia's hand down. "You'll make him look at me like I'm crazy!" She glanced quickly at James to make sure he hadn't noticed at all.

"Oh, I see..." Thalia replied, raising her eyebrows skeptically. "So you like Amber's brother? The girl you told me you hate because she hangs out with your sister? So instead you like her brother?"

"Yes?" Lily asked it as a question. Of course she didn't like Derek. She had nothing against him, but he seemed like the best choice at her minute's thinking.

"Well, do you like the guy or not?" Thalia asked. "Because I'm not sure you do."

"I do," Lily lied. "It's just...complicated. I would never want to date him."

"Because of Amber?" Thalia asked. "Well that makes sense. So choose a different guy. I wouldn't date Derek either."

Lily hummed and turned away, looking down at the lunch tables. Her gaze swept across the lunchroom with ease. She saw no one who caught her attention. Until she spotted James, on the tables, pretending to have a sword fight with Sirius, with bananas.

Thalia must have noticed her gaze lingering because she perked right up. "What about James Potter?"

Lily's head snapped up at his name, and she bit back her fear. "No. He's too much of a..." she trailed off, not sure what to call him. "He's just not...my type," she lied, biting into her apple to avoid answering any more questions.

"Really? Because you seem to notice him quite a bit more than you'd like to admit, Lily," Thalia continued.

"He's a junior. It's not like I can do anything. He's probably seventeen. Besides, I'm not into guys like him. I would rather like a guy, my age, you know?" Lily asked. "He's nice and all, but _way_ too popular and he's not really worth it. I like him, but not in _that _way."

"Or so you say," Thalia said sounding skeptical.

Lily turned to her friend, setting her apple aside. "What do you mean?"

"Oh nothing," Thalia said in a way that said it wasn't nothing. "You just sound more like you're trying to convince yourself that's all. I'm not sure who you're trying to convince. Yourself or me? Because I'm not as convinced as you're trying to make it sound," Thalia said. She smiled slightly.

_Me_, was what Lily was thinking. But the words that came out of her mouth were different, "I was trying to convince you."

"Mhm," Thalia didn't sound convinced. She raised her eyebrows slightly, but didn't question further.

* * *

"So, you're not insulting my friend anymore?" came the casual question from off to the side.

Lily whipped around. Thalia on the other hand, closed her eyes as though she dearly wished she wasn't there at the moment.

"No," Thalia replied softly, still not turning to face Sirius' smirking face.

"If you _must_ know, we weren't, thank you," Lily replied cooly, barely keeping the hiss out of her voice. Luckily, despite her red hair, she kept her temper well in check.

"So what are you talking about then?" Sirius asked, his voice still lightly casual.

"We were talking about life," Lily snapped, biting her tongue to keep from completely attacking him.

"So," Sirius said, sitting down on the floor next to the bench Lily and Thalia were on. "How was that homework last night?"

"It went fine, thanks for asking," Thalia snarled, despite the fact that she had just told Lily earlier that she's had troubles with every question.

"Well I think I did pretty well," Sirius said, leaning back against the wall and smirking.

"I didn't remember asking your opinion," Thalia stated calmly, her eyes narrowing into slits.

"No, you didn't," Sirius admitted. "But I felt like you would appreciate my input. Besides, that was my way of nicely asking if you might need help. I never said I found it easy."

Thalia finally turned, her eyes lost their hatred. "Alright, fine. Maybe I did have some trouble with it."

"Which question?" Sirius asked, whipping out his homework from what seemed nowhere.

Lily raised her eyebrow, doubting that he actually bothered to answer any of the questions. She was startled to realize that his paper was covered from top to bottom in black inked answers. Each answer was written in an untidy yet neat handwriting. It looked like calligraphy-though not as beautiful as Lily had seen.

"All of them?" Thalia said, staring in confusion at her own paper.

Lily shrugged when Sirius looked at her, and then at the paper. Finally, Sirius just handed her the paper and they started to talk, Sirius telling her exactly why he thought the answer was so and so.

Lily sat there, trying to look like she was part of the conversation. Though she understood none of what they were talking about.

She nearly jumped out of her skin when James sat next to her. He cracked a grin at Lily, who pretended like she didn't see him at first. But after a moment, she realized it was useless.

"Yes?" she asked, looking at him as though she didn't really care.

"Well, Sirius seems busy. So I guess I'll have to talk to you," he said, running his fingers through his hair.

"You act like it's a job," Lily said, not liking that fact at all.

He quickly backtracked. "I didn't mean to sound like that. I meant, Sirius isn't talking to me. So I thought I might come over and talk to you. It's not a job at all, you're a nice person, honest."

Lily raised her eyebrow. "So what do you want me to talk about? Don't tell me homework either," she warned.

James shook his head. "Made any friend beyond that Snape-guy?"

"What do you have against Snape?" she asked, looking around. She spotted Snape, not far away at a table.

"Nothing," James said quickly. Too quickly. Lily narrowed her eyes, but she didn't say anything.

"I think you do have something against him," Lily said matter-of-factly. "So, what is it?"

"He's just...not a nice guy. He's not someone you want to associated with. He's just not a good guy, alright?" James said.

Lily huffed, turning her back on him. "Well I don't care what you think. He's my friend. So don't think your opinion is going to change mine."


	8. Drawing Conclusions

**Always and Eternity**

**Chapter Eight: Drawing Conclusions**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter.

* * *

Lily stared at the ceiling of Thalia's bedroom, which was green. Thalia was sitting on the floor, on her computer. Lily lay across the yellow quilted bed, staring at the question paper.

"Okay, next, we need to figure out ways to cure the topic. So, let's see," Thalia's fingers tapped away quickly across the keyboard. "There's always vaccines.."

"Hmm..." Lily skimmed the paper for another question while Thalia typed the answer into a powerpoint. "I think they are doing research constantly on flu viruses."

"Okay, so it's a virus. Let's see, there are vaccines for some of them. Others, they aren't common anymore. Ooh, there's this one site, write it down!" Thalia turned the computer so Lily could copy the link.

This went on for hours. Until they had to go eat dinner, spaghetti and meatballs, and then work on their project some more.

Lily was working on the finishing touches, glitter glue and a box of beads. She was gluing on a blue bead when Thalia, who was pasting on the information (onto bright color paper), looked up. "So, about James."

Lily started so badly at his name, the glue went spewing across the cardboard posterboard. "Thalia! You made me mess up!" Lily whined, quickly trying to mop up the mess with a paper towel.

"Well, tell me about that James-boy then."

"Who?" Lily asked, biting the inside of her lip to keep from saying something either stupid, embarrassing or both.

"Don't play stupid with me Lily Evans," Thalia threatened, gluing down another informational sheet. "Do you like him or not?"

Lily pretended that she couldn't hear Thalia. When she could pretend no longer, she looked up. "Maybe."

Thalia looked up from where she was drawing decorations on the poster, eyebrow raised. "You sound like you're in denial."

"I am not," Lily snapped, eyes narrowed. "He's just a sort-of friend."

"He's a junior. Besides, you don't just 'make friends' with freshmen, especially not at random." Thalia rolled her eyes in annoyance at Lily's stubbornness. "Especially not when they are as annoying as those two."

"So you're now including Sirius in this, are you?" Lily asked, raising an eyebrow. "And here I was under the impression that you didn't even know he existed."

"He doesn't. Not in my mind," Thalia hastened to correct herself, going pink though Lily didn't notice.

"So why were you talking to him at lunch yesterday? You know, since he doesn't exist?" Lily asked, painting glitter on her poster.

"Well, that was different," Thalia said quickly, biting her lip. "Umm...he was helping me."

"Oh, so he just so happened to help you in the middle of lunch," Lily said sarcastically. "Sure."

Thalia gave a disbelieving snort, and turned her attention back to her computer screen. Lily looked up at her friend, eyes fixing on her friend's expression. "He does like you, you know?"

Thalia rolled her eyes. "Whatever you say," she didn't sound convinced.

"He likes you," Lily snapped, irritated. "And don't deny it. Have you seen any other girls that Sirius willingly talks to?"

"Not really, but that doesn't mean anything," Thalia replied, carefully dotting glue around the edges of a pink paper.

"And if he asked you out, say tomorrow, what would you say?" Lily asked.

Thalia glued the pink paper down, pushing her hair out of her eyes before she answered. "I'd say no and _then_ I would break his beautiful face with my fist."

"Ouch," Lily muttered wincing at the sound of it, "Don't you think that's a bit harsh?"

Thalia looked at Lily with one eyebrow raised. "Not really, besides, I think it's time _someone _showed him."

* * *

"What do you think of the posters they put up?" Sirius asked, raising his eyebrows at Thalia.

"I didn't even notice them," Thalia lied, glancing at the poster that Sirius was pointing at. "Why?" she asked, writing something else in her daily planner.

"Because I'm running, didn't you notice?" Sirius asked, looking horrified that she hadn't seen his poster. He pointed accusingly at his poster, with his name written in big bold lettering across the top. "I'm running for Class president!"

Thalia laughed, looking up at the poster. "Y-you?" she choked, through gasps for air and laughter. "You're running for president?" She faltered when she saw the flash of defiance in his eyes. "I-I mean, that's very...ambitious of you. Good luck."

"I have to run against James," Sirius said, pointing to his best friend's poster which was put up right next to his own. Thalia looked up and tried to blink past all the glitter and whatever those things were that were hanging off the poster.

"Um, well. I would say James will probably win," Thalia said, figuring that James was more popular and less of a jerk. Then again, with Sirius staring her down like that, she reconsidered quite quickly. "But if you beat him, let me know," she said, mocking cheerfulness.

"How can you say he'll win? I'm much better looking, don't you think?" Sirius asked, posing for her.

Thalia raised her eyebrow at him questioningly. "You have _got_ to be kidding me. I'm not saying anything that has to do with your looks. At. All."

"Well, don't you think I'll win?" Sirius asked, looking slightly hurt.

Thalia rolled her eyes. "It doesn't matter to me. You're the Junior Class, I'm just a freshman. Therefore," she stood up, picking up her backpack and swinging it over her shoulder. She walked past him, shoving him with her shoulder before she turned back with an almost regretful look on her face, "Stay out of my way," she warned him.

* * *

"Lily, what do you think of the posters Sirius and I made?" James asked, running to catch up with Lily. She raised an eyebrow at him but turned to her locker anyway and began to grab her books.

"I guess they're nice," she replied, not looking at them.

"Do you think I have a chance against him?" James asked, looking at the posters. "I mean, maybe I shouldn't have put that logo on there...and maybe my picture makes me seem self-centered."

Lily turned away from her locker, closing it. "Okay James, look. I really don't care who wins. Not that you're not nice, or anything. It's just, that's Junior Class, I'm not a junior. I'm a freshman, remember? We have different runners. But if you really care that much, I think you'll win easily. Tell Sirius not to use as many pictures of himself," she added as she walked to her next class. "It's rather...odd."

* * *

"Show-offs," Lily muttered, sitting at one of the tables that sat up above the rest of the cafeteria. She was talking about the two idiot boys who were walking around down there, shouting for anyone who would listen-about Class President.

"I mean, who do they think they _are_?" Thalia asked, scoffing when Sirius pretended to pose for a photograph, and then autograph it.

"You know, they aren't that bad," came someone's cool, collected voice from next to Lily.

She turned to see Remus settling himself on a stool next to them. "They're not as bad as they seem."

"Okay, maybe Sirius is as much trouble as he puts out," he allowed, seeing Sirius hit James when James was talking a girl into handing out flyers. "But they are the best friends someone could ask for."

"We are talking about the same James Potter and the same Sirius Black, right?" Thalia asked, eyebrows raised and green eyes suddenly surprised.

Remus chuckled. "Yes, we are talking about the same. They're not _that_ bad," he added. "Get to know them a bit, before you make judgements."


	9. If You Said

**Always and Eternity**

**Chapter Nine: If You Said**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter.

* * *

Lily turned to Thalia in the middle of math, noticing that Thalia wasn't paying attention at all, instead choosing to doodle little stars across her paper.

"If Sirius asked you out, would you honestly say no?" she whispered.

Thalia was silent, shading in a star with her pencil for so long that Lily wondered if she just hadn't heard her.

"I don't know," she answered at last. "He's...well, Sirius."

"That's not an answer," Lily told her, eyebrows raised.

"I'd say no," Thalia replied cooly, coloring another star in with a green marker, her favorite color.

"Why, I thought you liked him," Lily commented.

Thalia chewed her lip, drawing a fancy symbol on her paper. "No," she said quietly, and then firmer, "No. He's not worth it."

"So you'd let him go? All because you don't want to admit you like him?" Lily asked, but this time there was no reply.

Thalia crossed out her symbol and then began writing notes. She acted as though she couldn't hear her friend.

"Thalia?"

When there was no reply, she quit talking. she reluctantly picked up her pencil and began to take notes, despite the fact she didn't need to at all. Neither said a word all class, and it was very clear Thalia was in no mood to talk.

Behind her, in the back there were the guys, messing around as usual. Suddenly, their teacher whirled around, throwing a marker toward the back of the class.

There was a shout from one guy as he ducked in order to avoid the object, another let out a very un-manly shriek and dodged.

"Look, if you're in my class you pay attention! Now stop messing around or get out of my room," the teacher pointed to the door furiously, eyes flashing.

One guy rose, but he didn't move towards the door. "What happened?"

The teacher scowled, not amused at the boy who had been sleeping. He now tottered sideways, but didn't fall over.

Lily sent a disapproving glare behind her, annoyed at what had happened. Thalia silently rolled her eyes, and made a face at Lily, who giggled; she quickly clapped a hand over her mouth to stifle the sound though.

"So if I said no to Sirius, would you say yes to Severus?" Thalia asked as the class slowly turned their attention back to the front.

Lily scrunched up her nose, looking disbelievingly at Thalia. "You're joking!" she exclaimed, glaring at her friend. Then she paused when Thalia didn't even lift an eyebrow, "You are, aren't you?" she asked her eyes widening.

Thalia nodded. "I'm being honest. What would you say."

"I'd...well," Lily trailed off uncertainly. "It's not like I...like him that way. I just sort of like him. But not in that way. He's nice I suppose."

"You suppose," Thalia repeated. "So is that a no?"

"That's a no," Lily affirmed. "I don't like him as more than an...acquaintance if you must. He's sometimes rather annoying and a bit gloomy most days. He's a bit cheerful but then he goes back to his lonely existence."

"Well that sounds simply charming," Thalia said sarcastically, while Lily scribbled notes from the board.

"He's not so bad. You just don't like him because Sirius doesn't," Lily commented, not tearing her eyes from the board.

* * *

"Have you ever thought of something-amazing? But that would never happen?" Lily asked when the two of them were walking the halls during lunchtime.

"Yeah, that Sirius is never dating me." Lily looked at her sharply and Thalia hurriedly added, "I wish I could fly." She stared at the ceiling as though it might open up and let her fly away.

"Fly? Really? I don't like heights," Lily told her friend as usual. "They scare me. And it's too...frightening to think that you'd be shot down like a bird, or crash into someone else. I'd rather be able to control the weather."

"As long as you wouldn't make it rain," Thalia muttered.

"What would make you think I'd ever make it rain? I'm not a dreary person," Lily said defensively. "I might make it sunny all the time, and of course snow in the winter. I love snow, but sun is a lot nicer since it's warmer. I think it'd be awesome to cause things like hurricanes and a tsunami-"

"Wow there," Thalia cut her off. "No need for more natural disasters than we already have. I think I could do without the tsunamis at least. Or maybe warn some people first," Thalia elaborated throwing her hands up in the air causing her goldfish crackers to go flying.

"Then they'd think I'd lost it," Lily reminded her. "I can't go out and start predicting that pancakes are going to fall out of the sky," she shook her head in false dismay.

"Ooh! Could you really? I mean does that even count as something weather? I think that would be amazing. And syrup, with lemon...and butter maybe even powdered sugar," Thalia sighed dreamily. "That would be awesome. But now you're making me want pancakes," she shoved Lily teasingly.

"That wouldn't be a bad idea," Lily said thoughtfully, looking across the cafeteria. "It'd be better than what I had for breakfast-cold cereal and some toast."

* * *

Lily was staying after school, busily finishing a test in her class, with only her there. The teacher sat, grading papers in front of the classroom and glancing up now and then at the auburn haired girl who kept her head bent over her work as she scribbled furiously across the paper.

When she finally finished her last answer, she read through her test carefully to make sure she hadn't made any mistakes and then handed it in.

"Thank you Miss Evans," the teacher smiled politely at her and she nodded, gathering up her books and pencils.

But as fate would have it, she tripped going down the stairs, sending her things flying eveywhere. Muttering to herself quite angrily, she dropped to her knees in the hall and began collecting the brightly colored pencils scatterd across the ground. She diligently picked up her erasers, and shuffled her papers into neat stacks before she straightened up.

Shoving everything in her bag and decided she would deal with it later, she shouldered her bag and quickly went to her locker, twiddling the dial.

"I didn't know you stayed after," a calm voice sounded from behind her.

Lily yelped in surprise, her hand jerking on the dial, sending it spinning wildly. She whipped around, eyes narrowed to shoot daggers at the person who dared to mess her up. When her eyes met the bright, warm hazel ones though, she scoffed and swung back around and went back to opening her locker.

"Now really, that's how you treat a friend?" James asked, leaning casually against her locker, eyes glinting in amusement.

"Considering it's you, yes," Lily teased, swinging open her locker and shoving her books into her locker. "You could have at least warned me rather than scared me to death."

"But I wanted to see your lovely reaction," James said, eyes narrowed playfully.

"Alright, well you did that, now what do you want?" Lily asked, slamming her locker.

"Actually, I just wanted to talk to you. See, I don't have anyone to talk to around here, besides Sirius-" James was cut off by a burst of giggles from Lily, who clamped her hand over her mouth, eyes wide.

"Sorry," she muttered under her breath. "What did you want to know?"

"I have no one to talk to, I was wondering if I could text you?" James pulled out his sleek, plain black touch phone and looked at her questioningly.

She hesitated, and then nodded. "Sure, just let me check the number on my phone."

"You don't know your own number?" James asked, eyes flickering across her face. "I don't know mine either."

She flicked through her phone, confirming her number and with a cheerful wave, he ran out with a, "Thanks Lily, I'll text you later!"


	10. Silently Scared

**Always and Eternity**

**Chapter Ten: Silently Scared**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter.

_"Every man needs a woman when his life is a mess. Because just like a game of chess, the QUEEN PROTECTS the KING."_

_"When I text you it means I miss you. When I don't text you it means I want __you__ to miss me."_

* * *

Lily had completely ignored Thalia's persistent questioning. "You did WHAT?" Thalia screamed for perhaps the tenth time that morning, her olive green eyes blazing with fury.

"I gave him my phone number, what's wrong with that?" Lily asked, pretending to not see Thalia's furious gaze, continuing to look through her math book for her homework.

"What's wrong with that? Lily, are you out of your mind?" Thalia yelped, throwing her hands in the air in exasperation. "You like him."

Lily pulled a face, "Whatever. What about David? Have you still not talked to him?"

Thalia flushed, "I'm working on it," she replied a little too quickly. "I still have to figure out what I'm going to say to him."

Lily rolled her eyes. Her friend could be so dramatic sometimes. "What about just a hello?"

Thalia mouthed the word slowly, looking thoughtful. "No, that's too long. I might mess up," she decided finally.

"What about just hi? It's only two letters long. I'll even walk with you if it'll convince you," Lily pulled out her homework finally, checking over it to make sure she'd done everything.

"I can't," Thalia hissed. "I'll probably mess that up too. Or else sound like a complete idiot. I can't talk to him."

It was Lily's turn to glare. "If you don't, I'll drag you down the hall and shove you in front of him. Then you'll have to talk."

"Or I could run," Thalia muttered, looking as though she thoroughly hated Lily now. "You're a horrible friend, you know."

Lily grinned, "I know. But you'll thank me later."

"What if..." Thalia looked around uncertainly. "What if I lied..."

"You what?" Lily stared at her friend, shocked and hurt.

"I lied, I don't like Derek..."Thalia trailed off looking at her friend and then the floor.

"So why-?"

"Because I didn't want to tell you who I really liked." The answer was short and Thalia looked up at Lily, judging her reaction.

Lily smirked. "So you do like Sirius."

Thalia rolled her eyes. "You only think that because he's best friends with James Potter."

Lily gaped at her friend, and smacked her jokingly. "I do not, James is an...acquaintance."

"You mean an acquaintance that you just so happen to like?" Thalia inquired, eyebrows raised.

"What do you mean by that? Of course I like him, he's nice," Lily replied evasively.

"You gave him your phone number. You texted him until midnight last night if I'm not mistaken," Thalia pointed out.

"I did not," Lily snapped. "What makes you think that?"

"Well for one, you told me you stayed up last night. Two, you stopped texting me at only ten. Which isn't normal. Which means that you either fell asleep early, which never happens, or you were distracted."

Luckily for Lily, the bell went off before she could open her mouth to retort. "I have gym, see you later," she replied, faking a smile at her friend.

"We're talking about this later, Lily," Thalia warned before she walked away, eyes piercing into Lily's.

* * *

Thalia was giving her the stare down, she didn't have to ask what that meant. Lily averted her eyes and stared at the ground, suddenly fascinated by the flecks of color on the tiles. "What?" she asked as calm as she could manage when she could stand the silence no more.

"I think you should go for it," Thalia answered honestly. "I also think that if he's as nice as you say he is, then he's worth it. But just remember that you don't need a guy to tell you who you are Lily. You don't need a boyfriend to tell you that you're pretty and amazing, you already are."

"Thank you," Lily looked up at her friend. "So you aren't mad?"

Thalia gave her a startled look. "No, why would I be mad? Maybe a little annoyed that you didn't tell me so much earlier than you did, but no, I'm not mad at you Lily. You're my best friend. I just don't want to see you get hurt."

"And I don't want to get hurt either, which is why I haven't told him," Lily said, crossing her arms.

"I'll ask him for you then," Thalia suggested, brightening up, her eyes lighting up with mischief.

"No. Don't you dare. I don't want to scare him off," Lily snapped at her friend.

"I won't, it's just a question. He doesn't have to know it's you," Thalia whined, trying to bargain with Lily who stood stubbornly, arms crossed.

"No, I forbid you to tell him," Lily said sternly.

"Yes, mom," Thalia joked. "I won't. But I think he likes you. Otherwise juniors usually keep to themselves. They don't just choose to talk to freshmen. Unless it's to pick on them."

"So a junior can't be friends with a freshman?" Lily asked, eyebrows raised skeptically.

"Well it's not that they can't, usually they just don't bother because it's not really important to them. They don't really care what freshman tend to do. They just let us be annoying, short, and a bother to them. It's just how it works, Lils," Thalia explained.

"Don't call me Lils, I hate the nickname," Lily said in exasperation.

"If James called you that, I hardly doubt you would mind," Thalia said dryly.

Lily opened her mouth to argue, stared blankly at her friend for a long moment and then shut her mouth and simply glared at her friend. After a long while, she managed a weak, "I would too."

Thalia raised an eyebrow. "You say that but you don't mean it."

* * *

"There's your boyfriend," Lily teased, jerking her head in Sirius's direction a smirk gracing her lips.

Thalia rolled her eyes. "And here comes yours."

Lily glared at her friend before turning to meet James, who did a surprising thing. Instead of greeting her with the usual smile, he ran forward and picked her up, swinging her around.

She shrieked, startled, "James Potter, put me down!"

He did, grinning all the same. "Geez Lily, calm down," he said backing away when she hit him playfully, her green eyes sparkling.

"I hate you James Potter," she snapped, eyes narrowed though her lips curved into a small smile.

James laughed and in an offended tone, turned to her and said, "Oh come on Lils, I'm not that bad. I thought you loved me."

Lily rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, looking away pointedly. "Nope, you must have imagined it," she claimed.

He laughed at her. "I'll get you for that," he threatened, dropping his bag on the ground next to Thalia.

Lily yelped and dropping her own bag, took off down the hall. James shouted her name and was after her in seconds.

She only made it halfway down the hall before he caught her around the waist, and when she lashed out and yelled at him, he stumbled, sending them both to the ground.

Lily was laughing, her eyes sparkling and James leaned down, brushing her hair back and laughing as well. "It suits you Lils," he commented, trying to fix her hair.

She smacked his arm, "You're a horrible influence on me, you know," she said, slapping his hands away and fixing her hair herself.

James' smile hesitated, and then he pulled himself up off the floor, offering Lily his hand. She hesitated to take it, and when she did, he pulled her up easily.

Lily managed a smile, and thought about how everyone said he was such a playboy...and thought _"I don't want to be your 'favorite' or your 'best'. I want to be your only and forget the rest."_


	11. I think

**Always and Eternity  
Chapter Eleven: I Think...**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.**

* * *

She stared silently at her phone, and hesitated to send the message that she was dying to type. His message read, "I have to go, sorry, bye."

She typed, "I think of you all the time, and I miss you." Then, she cleared the message hurriedly and wrote, "I think I really like you." Fighting against fear, she closed her eyes and thought, before clearing the message and wrote, "I think I love you."  
With a sigh, she cleared the message and wrote, "Bye," and sent it easily.

Why was it so easy to tell him everything, except for the one secret that she couldn't tell because it was too close to her heart. She still missed her friend, and her old home. She didn't want to move on because that meant she would have to let go. Was it because she was afraid to believe it, or because she didn't want to be rejected?  
Sometimes she doubted she even liked the guys that she did. Maybe she was just so in love with the pain, the idea of having something that she knew she'd never get. Maybe she didn't love them at all, but just liked to be hurt.

"Lily!" Petunia's voiced snapped through the dead silence, making Lily jump slightly and turn her head from her phone.  
"Hm?" she straightened up from where she had been lying on her stomach, reading through her textbook.  
"I've been calling your name for the last two minutes. Where is your mind at?" Petunia shook her head and walked out saying that dinner was ready.  
Lily rose from her textbook, and followed her sister into the kitchen. "What's for dinner? It smells delicious," she complimented her mother with a smile.  
Rose smiled, pushing back a loose red curl. Her hair was almost like Lily's. "I made lasagna, your favorite," she answered. "Drew dear, come to dinner," she called down the hall.  
Lily heard the closing of her father's door and began to gather plates from the cabinet. Next, she pulled out silverware and set the table making sure that the napkins were folded nicely, and the silverware was all properly aligned. Petunia used floral potholders to pick up the lasagna in the pan and carried it got the table.  
"Dad, come on. Stop typing and come eat," Lily called down the hallway. She heard her father sigh and then the click of his laptop closing. The next second he appeared, rubbing the back of the neck tiredly as he sat down.  
However, his emerald green eyes brightened at the sight of his two daughters. "How was school?" he asked as he began to dish up.  
Lily opened her mouth to answer, but was cut off by her sister's eager reply.  
"I want to go to the homecoming dance. They're making it festive, and they're going to have music and dancing. My friend Tina is going. She's already asked her boyfriend and he's going to pick us up if that's okay with you." Lily stared at her sister, startled.  
"What about Amber? Is she going?" She had rarely seen her sister unattached from her 'other half' as Lily liked to call her. Not that the two of them were in any way similar.  
Petunia shrugged and dished lasagna onto her plate, handing the rest of the pan to Lily who took it slowly, looking at her sister for a reaction. "She and I aren't really friends anymore." At Lily's shocked face she added, "she found a new friend who she can play Barbie with."  
"So who is Tina?" Lily asked politely to cover up much of her shock, and began to cut up her meal.  
"She's nice, and she's smart. Which is good, Amber was always asking me for answers and I had to tell her no. Tina's not like that at all. She looks over my homework to make sure I did alright." Petunia took a sip of her iced water. "She's better and she accepts me for who I am."  
Her father nodded, "I think it sounds fun. Are you going with a guy?" He narrowed his eyes suspiciously as though debating getting out a baseball bat or not.  
Petunia shook her head, although Lily caught the way her sister's mouth curved upwards, and the faint blush that appeared on her sister's cheeks. "No. Tina's going with her boyfriend but I think I'll just find another friend to hang out with on the sidelines if they play any slow songs. It probably won't happen though. Lils, do you have a homecoming dance?"  
Lily felt all eyes turn to her and looked down at her plate, wishing she had more food. "I think we do. But it's later on. I'm going to go with Thalia if that's okay." She looked at her mother and father, who exchanged glances.  
"I think it's a good idea. Maybe you'll make some new friends and meet some more of the people at your school," her mother suggested with a slight smile.  
Her father shrugged as a way of adding in his opinion. When his wife narrowed her eyes at him, he swallowed his bite of food and added, "I think it's a brilliant idea."  
Petunia rose, taking dinner dishes from everyone and taking them to the large sink. She filled the sink with water, and added soap, motioning that Lily was to dry them.  
Afterwards, Lily returned to her room and found a text from Thalia, asking her what homework they had for English II. She worked on her homework for two hours, a record pace for the ridiculous amount that their teachers had given them.  
"Lily? Do you think this dress is too fancy?" Petunia spun around in a pale, light green dress that brought out the color of her eyes.  
Lily shook her head, tossing her red hair over her papers accidentally. "No. I think it's perfect."  
Petunia made a small tsk sound as though she disapproved of her sister's opinion, but then flashed her a quick smile before leaving, her blonde hair almost getting caught in the door. The last thing Lily heard before the door closed was her sister calling out "Mom!", obviously looking for another opinion.


End file.
